Retail sales volumes picked up by an estimated 0.5% in August, topping off a solid three months for food retailers.
ONS figures showed sales volumes rose by 0.9% over the three months to August 2026, while month-on-month numbers showed August’s 0.5% rise largely recover from a fall in July.
Online shopping saw by far the largest growth over the past three months, with volumes up by more than 5%. In that period, food store volumes grew by 0.7%, though volumes were up just 0.3% between July and August.
“Supermarkets did well in both July and August,” said the ONS.
“Retailers selling alcohol and beverages performed well across all three months to August 2026, which they attributed to promotions, the hot weather, and the World Cup.”
Fuel sales fell in the month as shoppers tried to mitigate their exposure to higher fuel prices from the Iran war.
“August’s warm weather delayed the usual shift towards autumn purchases, but retailers successfully kept consumers spending,” said Sandra Prince, head of corporate consumer at Lloyds.
“The late bank holiday weekend and back-to-school shopping are also likely to have supported demand, with online sales among the areas seeing the biggest boost.
“While consumers continue to spend, many households are still carefully balancing their budgets and prioritising where their money goes. It remains to be seen how potential changes in inflation conditions may influence spending patterns over the coming months.”
KPMG’s latest consumer confidence survey, also released this morning, revealed a slight easing in shoppers’ pessimism by early September.
A majority (56%, up from 55% in May) said they felt financially secure, and while 55% said they felt the UK economy was worsening, that proportion fell from 60% the previous quarter.
“Healthy levels of summer spending activity were driven by resilient consumer financial confidence, the warm weather, and coincided with marginal improvement regarding perception of the UK economy,” said KPMG UK head of consumer, retail and leisure Linda Ellett.
“The retail sector saw sales growth, particularly in the early part of summer, while over half of consumers report having eaten out and around four in 10 going out for a drink. The final quarter of the year, including the Black Friday promotional month and Christmas, is key for retailers – who will be hoping to improve further upon the early summer months.”
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